Owner-occupier and investor lending jumps in March

Overall, residential mortgage lending in New Zealand jumped to $5.85bn last month from $4.67bn in February, new data reveals.

The figures were driven by a strong showing from owner-occupiers already on the property ladder, who accounted for $3.4bn of home loans, up from $2.8bn in February.

First time buyers accounted for $911m of new loans, up from $727m in February. The figures marked the highest March numbers in three years. First time buyers received $819m in loans in March 2017, and $753m in March 2016, according to RBNZ statistics.

Investor loans topped $1.3bn in March, dwarfing the $1.03bn made in February. However, the investor numbers are significantly below those seen in previous years. Loans to property investors topped $2.1bn in March 2016, and $1.4bn in March last year.

The uptick in home loans follows a slight relaxation of LVR restrictions in January, which saw the minimum deposit for property investors cut from 40% to 35%. From January, banks were also able to lend more to owner-occupiers with a 20% deposit.

Lending at more than 80% LVR remained subdued in March, accounting for $443m of home loans. This compares to $359m in March 2017, and $517m in March 2016.